I didn't see "Napoleon Dynamite" when it hit theaters almost eight years ago and became something of a cult phenom.

That's probably a good thing: If the first two episodes of the new animated series (7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Fox; 1 star) based on it are any indication, I would not have sat through it.

I understand from friends who loved the movie that it was a sweet, gentle look at a group of misfits. The humor of the movie came out of its honest portrayals. Maybe that's the problem with the animated version: Everything feels like a put-on; nothing seems plausible.

In "Scantronica Love," a scantron machine matches Napoleon's girlfriend Deb (Tina Majorino) with bully Don Moser (co-producer Jared Hess). Napoleon has to act fast to stop her from getting "engaged to get engaged to get engaged..." You get the idea.

The animaton is cool and it's probably fun for fans to have the original cast doing all the voices. Would be nice if it was funny, too.